The Komet was first flown by the Royal Aircraft Establishment in 1945, but owing to considerable maintenance difficulties, especially with the hydraulic system, the tests were not completed until November, 1947. The first flight with instrumentation was made in February, 1946. During all these tests a Spitfire IX was used to tow the aircraft. All flights were made from Wisley or Wittering airfields since it was necessary to use a grass runway to land on the skid type undercarriage. During the flights by the RAE the rocket unit was removed and an auto-observer installed in its place. The Nov 1947 tests had the purpose to evaluate the skid as a landing gear for a proposed supersonic fighter study by the RAE.
During a high speed landing with the famous Captain Eric "Winkle" Brown at the controls (at 158 mph IAS, more than double the stall speed) the skid system collapsed completely and the program was wound up since the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
The Komet was first flown by the Royal Aircraft Establishment in 1945, but owing to considerable maintenance difficulties, especially with the hydraulic system, the tests were not completed until November, 1947. The first flight with instrumentation was made in February, 1946. During all these tests a Spitfire IX was used to tow the aircraft. All flights were made from Wisley or Wittering airfield…
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